Apparatus for processing packaged



Aug. 7, 1951v APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING PACKAGED FOOD MATERIAL Filed Aug. 26, 194'? v 1` 2 sweeps-sheet 1 IH.J.B|ERMAN A '2,563,576'

Hls ATToRNEY.

Aug. 7, 1951 H. J. BIERMAN 2,563,576

APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING PACKAGED F'OOD MATERIAL Filed Aug. 26, 194'.

7111111 l 'IIIJIL l Il l 2 Sheets-Sheer?l 2 Y' INVENTOR wIBERT J- BIERNAN Hls ATTORNEY.

Patented Aug. 7, 1951 APPARATUS FOR PROCESSING PACKAGED FOOD MATERIAL Hubert J. Bierman, Chatham, N. J., assignor to Ingersoll-Rand Company, New York, N. Y., a

corporation of New Jersey Application August 26, 1947, Serial No. 770,627

(Cl. G2- 452) Claims.

. i Other objects willbe in `part obvious and in part pointed out hereinafter. i

i In the drawings accompanying this specification and in which similar reference numerals refer to similar parts,

' Figurel is a plan view, partly broken away, of a food processing apparatus showing one form that the invention may assume in practice,

`Figures 2 and 3` are transverse views` taken through Figure 1 on the Ylines 2--2 and 3 3,

` respectively i Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 1 showing a modified form of the invention, and

Figures 5, 6 and '7 are views taken on the lines '5-`5,- 6-6 and 1 1, respectively, through Figure 4. u Y,

Referring to the drawings, Land at first more particularly to the form of the invention shown in Figures `1 to 3 inclusive, the apparatus, designated in general by `20, comprises a casing 2l having a freezing chamber 22 wherein the food is subjected `to a high Vacuum for freezing it and a transfer chamber `23` through which the food material passes to the chamber 22.

The means serving to create the vacuum in the freezing chamber may, as shown, be a steam ejector 24 the suction chamber of which communicates with the freezing chamber 22 through a conduit 25.

Within the freezing chamber 22 is a conveyor 26, preferably of the endless type, for carrying food in containers 21, as for example cartons or cans, that remain uncovered at their ends during the processing period in order that their contents will be fully exposed to the vacuum within the freezing chamber. The conveyor 26 is arranged in the form of a loop that extends through the freezing chamber 22 and is trained over idler wheels 28 and 29 that lie in the vertical plane of the transfer chamber 23 so that the containers may drop from the latter onto the conveyor 26 and, after passing through the freezing chamber, drop from the conveyor into the transfer chamber. Thefood is delivered to and carried away from the conveyor 26 by a rotary plate 3D that has a series of equally spaced recesses 3l in its periphery to receive the food containers and to register with -the portions of the conveyor trained over the idler wheels 28 and 29 and also with conveyors 32 and 33 that extend radially of the plate 3l! and serve, respectively, to carry food to and from the transfer chamber. The delivery end of the conveyor 32 and the portion of the conveyor trained over the wheel 29 are so located that the food containers 21 will be projected directly into a recess 3| by the conveyors, and the portions of the conveyors 33 and 26 upon which the containers are deposited by the plate 30 are positioned beneath the plate 3D so that when a recess 3| moves into the vertical plane of these portions the containers will drop downwardly upon the conveyors. i

The food is normally supported, within the recesses, by` an annular table 34 which may be an integral portion of the casing and lies directly beneath the marginal portion of the plate 3U. The table 34 is also provided with suitable recesses 35 in the vertical planes of the idler wheel 28 and the conveyor 33 .to permit the food to drop therethrough to the conveyors, in the manner indicated in Figure 2 of the drawings.

To the end that the food may be gradually subjected to a decreasing pressure while passing through the transfer chamber to the freezing chamber, the casing 2l is provided with a series of vacuum chambers, four in the present instance, and designated 36, 31, 38 and 35. These chambers lie between the conveyor 32 and the loading end of the conveyor 26. They are of arcuate form and communicate, respectively, with the transfer chamber 23 through ports 40, 4I, 42 and 43. The chambers 36, 31, 38 and 33 are evacuated by a pump 44 and communicate, respectively,

with the inlet conduit of said pump through branches 46, 41, 48 and 49. Each branch has an adjustable valve 50 for selectively varying the pressure in the vacuum chambers. The vacuum chamber 33, being adjacent the point of transfer of food from the plate 30 to the conveyor V2li, serves in addition to prevent the entrance `the transfer chamber 23 ata point between the conveyors 33 and 26. A conduit 52 aiords communication between the chamber 5| and the vacuum pump 44 and is controlled by a valve 50.

In the form of the invention illustrated, movement is imparted to the conveyor 26 from the rotary plate 38. The plate 36 accordingly has a shaft 53 extending axially therethrough, and on the end portion of the shaft lying below the casing 2| is a gear 54 that meshes with a pinion 55 carried by a shaft 56. The shaft 56 is supported by bearings 51 and carries a wheel 58 for driving a belt 59 which is trained over a wheel 69 suitably affixed to a shaft 6| carrying a sprocket wheel 62 that interlockingly engages the conveyor 26 for driving it. The plate 30 is driven by a suitable variable speed motor 63 the shaft 64 of which carries a pinion 65 to mesh with the gear 54.

The operation of the device is as follows: VLet it be assumed that the conveyors and the plate 30 are operating at'desired speeds, that the ejector 24 and the vacuum pump 44 are in operation and that the valves 59 are so adjusted as to assure the desired pressures within the chambers 36 to A39 and the chamber 5|. Under these conditions,

containers of food conveyed to the transfer chamber 23 by the conveyor 3-2 will be deposited into successive recesses 3| accordingly as said recesses move into registry with the conveyor, and when the recesses move into communication with the ports 40 to 43 the air is removed therefrom by the vacuum pump 44. When the recesses 3| move into registryV with the recess 35 adjacent the chamber 39 the containers will drop therethrough onto the conveyor 26. As will be readily understood, the spacing of the containers 21 with respect to each other upon the conveyor will be determined by the spacing of the recesses 3| With respect to each other and, of course, also by the relative speeds of the plate 38 and the conveyor 26.

These speeds are constant for each variety of food and are so selected thatthe food within the containers will be completely frozen by the time it reaches the point of transfer to a recess 3| and that a container will be transferred to the plate 39 as each recess 3| moves into registry with the portion of the conveyor trained over the wheel 29.

Upon being transferred to the plate 38 from the conveyor 26 the food is carried in the d-irection of the conveyor 33 and when a recess 3| moves into registryrwith the recess 35 adjacent saidV conveyor the container will fall thereupon for removal from the processing apparatus.

In the form of the invention shown in Figures 4 to "1, inclusive, the portion of the casing 66 defining the freezing chamber 61 is of substantially rectangular shape and the conveyor 68 withinthe freezing chamber, shown as being of the endless type, is arranged in the form of a U. One stem end portion of the conveyor is trained over an idler wheel 69 supported by standards 10 resting upon the bottom of the freezing chamber 61. rIihe idler wheel 1| supporting the other stem end portion of the conveyor is also supported by standards 18 seated upon the bottom of the freezing chamber 61 but is'positioned at a higher ele- Avation than the wheel 69. Owing to this arrangement, the conveyor 68 inclines gradually from the idler wheel 69 to the idler wheel 1|.

The portions of the conveyor trained over the wheels 69-11 are advantageously positioned for depositing the containers upon the conveyor 68 and for transferring them to a carrier 12 at one end of the freezing chamber and serving to de- 4 liver the food to and carrying it away from the conveyor 68. The carrier 12 is shown as being in the form of a bar of rectangular shape. It is reciprocable transversely of the stem portions of the conveyor 68 being slidable in apertures 13 in the casing 66. In the side of the carrier 12 confronting the chamber 61 are recesses 14 and 15 that extend from the upper to the lower surfaces of the carrier to receive the containers.

The recesses are so spaced with respect to each other that one recess will lie in the vertical plane of a stem end portion of the conveyor 68 and the other recess will lie exteriorly of the casing 66 and in the vertical plane of a conveyor lying exteriorly of theV casing 66. Two such conveyors designated 16 and 11 are shown and serve, respectively, to deliver containers to the carrier and to convey them from the carrier.

During their transfer from one conveyor to another the containers rest upon stationary hori zontalV plates 18 and 19 that may be supported by .the casing 66 in any suitable manner and extend Y into slots 88 in the carrier 12. The plate 18`lies across the end of the conveyor 16 and extends to a point coincident with the vertical plane of the adjacent side of the conveyor 68. Owing to this arrangement, the containers are transferred directly from the conveyor 16 onto the adjacent plate 18 and, upon movement of the carrier 12, the'container will slide along the plate 18 until the recess 14 moves out of the plane of the plate. The container 21 will then fall through the recess onto the conveyor 68. v

The plate 19 is, on the rother hand, so positioned that an end portion lies in front of the idler wheel 1| and its opposite end in the vertical plane of the adjacent side of the conveyor 11. By reason of this arrangement the containers delivered to the plate 19 will be carried along its upper surface by the carrier 12 and when the recess 15 moves into the vertical plane of the conveyor 11 the containerwill drop thereon. j

In the form of the -invention shown, the carrier 12 is actuated by pressure fluid and is accordingly provided at one end with a stem 8| carrying a piston 82 that reciprocates within a cylinder 83 on the casing 66. Pressure fluid is conveyed to the ends of the cylinder 83 by pipes 84 and 85 leading from a casing 86 having a valve chamber 81 for a distributing valve 88. The pressure uid distributed thereby is conveyed to the chamber 81 from a source of supply (not shownlby a conduit 89 that communicates with the chamber 81 at a point intermediate the pipes 84-85. The casing 86 is provided with free exhaust ports 90 and 9| that are controlledby the valve 88.

' The valve 88 is shown as being of the spool 93 and the head 94 and the exhaust port 9| will be blanked-off by the head 94.

In the opposite limiting position of the valve the head 95 will cut-01T communication between the pipe 84 and the exhaust port 90 and pressure fluid will iiow from the supply conduit 89 through the space between the flange 93 and the head 95 into the pipe 84. The pipe will then also be in communication with the atmosphere through "the space between the flange 93 and the head 94 end of the valve chamber by a conduit 96, and A its return movement is effected by a spring 91 in the opposite end of the valve chamber 81. The pressure fluid supply for actuating 4the valve 88 Ais controlled by a time cycle controller 98 of the type disclosed in United States Patent No. 2,272,- 23'1 to W. J. Brown et al. and which, described only briefly herein, comprises a rotary drum 99 carrying a series of stops for actuating a valve mechanism IOI that controls the flow of pressure uid from a supply conduit I02H to the conduit 96. i

To the end thatthe movements of the Vcarrier 12 and the conveyor 68 may be correctly synchronized with each other in "order that the recess will be in position to receive a container of frozen food at the time of the arrival of such containerat the point of transfer from the conveyor to the carrier, movement is `transmitted from the carrier to the conveyor 08. The means serving this purpose comprises, in a preferred form, a rope or cable |03 connected at one end to an anchor bolt |04 on the carrier 12. l The adjacent portion of the cable |03 extends lo-ngitudinally of the carrier and is trained over an idler wheel |05 on a shaft-|06 depending from the cover |01 ofthe casing 06. l 1w f The cable |03 makes a right-angleturn at the idler wheel and is Wound .around a sheave |08 rotatable upon a shaft |09 in the freezing chamber 01, and on the free dependingr end portion I|0 of the cable is a Weight III that constantly maintains the cable taut and in rm `contact with the idler wheel |85 and the sheave |08.

- Aof th-e plate the container will fall onto the con- The sheave |08 lies in parallelism with a leg of l the conveyor 58 and in its hub portion is a springpressed pawl ||2 for engagement with the teeth |3 of a ratchet wheel I I4 keyed to the shaft |09 carrying a sprocket wheel |I5 that is in driving engagement with the conveyor 68. By reason of this arrangement the sheave |08 will rotate freely in one direction about the shaft |00 when the carrier 12 moves in the direction of the conveyor 10, and when the carrier moves in the opposite direction the pawl I2 will engage a tooth ||3 of the ratchet wheel ||4 and causes the shaft |09 and the sprocket wheel |5 to rotate and thereby move the conveyor 68 in step-by-step fashion `for moving the containers through the freezing chamber.

In the operation of the device and assuming the drum 99 of the time cycle controller to be rotating at a constant rate and the carrier 12 and the valve 88 to be in the positions shown in Figure l of the drawings, a stop |00 will actuate the valve mechanism |0I to admit pressure fluid from the supply conduit |02 through the conduit y96 into the valve chamber 81. The valve will be shifted thereby to its left hand limiting position and pressure fluid will then flow from the conduit 89 through the valve chamber and the pipe 84 into the right h-and end of the cylinder 83 and move the piston 82 and the carrier 12 leftward. The container in the recess 14 will slide along the plate 18 until the recess moves out of the plane of the plate 10 whereupon the container will drop through the lower portion of the recess 14 onto the conveyor 68. Simultaneously therewith, a

Acontainer' previously transferred from the conveyor 68 to the recess 15 will slide along the plate 19 and when the recess 15 moves out of the plane veyor 11 for removal from the processing apparatus. During movement of the carrier in the direction described, the pawl ||2 will interlockingly engage a tooth of the ratchet wheel II4 and the cable |03 will cause the sprocket wheel A H5 to describe a partial revolution and thereby impart movement to the conveyor 58 for moving the containers toward the point of transfer to the recess 15. r

When the carrier 12 reaches the end of its stroke a stop |00 will actuate the valve mechanism |0I for exhausting the pressure fluid from the valve chamber 81. The spring 91 will then shift the valve 88 and establish communication between the supply conduit 89 and the pipe 85 through the space between the ange 93 and the head 94 of the valve. Pressure fluid'thereby admitted into the left hand end of the cylinder 83 will return the carrierV to its initial position for transferring another container from the conveyor 16 to the recess 14 and to transfer a container from the conveyor 68 to the recess 15.

The apparatus may continue to operate uninterruptedly, in the manner described, to deliver containers to and carry them from the freezing chamber and, as will `be readily understood, the speed of` operation of the carrier and of the conveyors may vary in accordance with variation in the time required for freezing different kinds of food, but in each case these elements will operate at such a rate that the food will be completely frozen by the time the `containers arrive atjthe pointoftransfer from the freezing chamberto the carrier.

I claim: i

1. Apparatus for freezing food material, comprising a casing having a chamber to receive food lfor processing, means for maintaining a processing temperature in the chamber, a conveyor for carrying such food through the chamber during the processing thereof, and a carrier for delivering the food to and from the conveyor.

2. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a chamber toreceive food for processing, means for maintaining a processing temperature in the chamber, a conveyor for carrying such food through the chamber and operating at a constant rate of speed, and a carrier for delivering food to the conveyor at a constant rate and to carry such food from the conveyor.

3. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber and a transfer chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the freezing chamber, a conveyor for carrying food through the freezing chamber, a carrier in the transfer chamber for delivering food to the conveyor, means for subjecting such food to vacuum during the passage thereof through the transfer chamber, and means for varying the degree of vacuum along the path of movement of the food through the transfer chamber.

4. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having ,a freezing chamber and a transfer chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the freezing chamber, a conveyor for carrying food through the freezing chamber, a rotary carrier in the transfer chamber having recesses for food to register with the conveyor for transferring such food from the carrier to the conveyor, and means for gradually reducing the pressure in the recesses and the food therein during its passage through the transfer chamber.

5. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber and a transfer chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the freezing chamber, a conveyor for carrying food through the freezing chamber, a carrier in the transfer chamber for delivering food to and carrying it from the freezing chamber, means for subjecting such food to a vacuum during the passage thereof through the transfer chamber to the freezing chamber, and means for driving the conveyor and the carrier at relatively constant rates of speed.

6. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the chamber, a conveyor for carrying food through the freezing chamber during the freezing thereof, a reciprocatory carrier for delivering food to and conveying such food from the conveyor, and means for effecting the distribution of power medium to the reciprocatory carrier for actuating said carrier.

7. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the chamber, a conveyor for moving food through the chamber during the freezing thereof, a fluid actuated reciprocatory carrier for delivering food to and conveying such food from the conveyor and having opposed actuating surfaces, and a valve for distributing pressure fluid alternately to the actuating surfaces for effecting reciprocatory movement of the carrier.

8. Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber, means for maintaining a, freezing vacuum in the chamber, a conveyor for moving food through the chamber during the freezing thereof, a fluid actuated reciprocatory carrier for delivering food to and conveying such food from the conveyor `and having opposed actuating surfaces, a valve, for distributing pressure uid alternately to the actuating surfaces for effecting reciprocatory movement of the carrier, and a timing device for controlling the movements of the valverl 9. Apparatus for processing food 'materiaL comprising a casing having a freezing chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the chamber, a conveyor for moving food through the chamber during the freezing thereof, a reciprocatory carrier for delivering food to and conveying such food from the conveyor, .and means for transmitting movement from the carrier to the conveyor.

10.V Apparatus for processing food material, comprising a casing having a freezing chamber, means for maintaining a freezing vacuum in the chamber, a conveyor for moving food through the chamber during the freezing thereof, a reciprocatory carrier for delivering food to and conveying such food from the conveyor and having opposed actuating surfaces, a valve for distributing pressure fluid alternately to the actuating surfaces for effecting reciprocatory movement of the carrier, and means for transmitting move- Yment from the carrier to the conveyor.

HUBERT J. BIERMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the le of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 888,257 Passburg May 19, 1908 1,079,150 Sleeper Nov. 18, 1913 1,930,414 Buhr Oct. 10, 1933 2,021,772 Fleisher NOV. 19, 1935 2,123,080 Rowland July 5, 1938 2,123,969 Downey Nov. l5, 1938 

